The council of a small town in Taranaki is mulling information it has received about a suspected water theft.
The small Taranaki town of Midhirst has lost thousands of litres of water in what the local council believes is a suspected theft. Photo: 123rf.com
Midhirst has a resident population of about 240.
The Stratford District Council, which oversees Midhirst, said 4000 litres of water per hour has repeatedly disappeared from the town's water supply over four hour blocks on numerous occasions.
It said whenever the water disappears, it has been at night and in summer.
The council first noticed the anomaly about a year ago.
Although it has previously been treated as a leak, the pattern and the timing suggest it is a deliberate take.
The council has received calls from members of the public about the water and it will be following up on the new information next year.
It said it was going through a process of elimination through leads from the public.
